Manchester United Prepares for PSG Clash Amid Injury Challenges
A new era for Manchester United inches forward on Friday night, with Michael Carrick’s squad still looking more like a work in progress than a finished product as they head into a glamour meeting with PSG.
The new manager finally has one of his headline summer arrivals at his disposal. The midfielder, delayed by Belgium’s run to the World Cup quarter-finals and the mandatory 21-day rest period that followed, is now available and ready to step into Carrick’s plans.
Others are not so lucky.
World Cup toll leaves key names out
The same enforced break continues to strip United of some of their biggest names. England pair Marcus Rashford and Kobbie Mainoo, along with Argentina defender Lisandro Martinez, remain unavailable as they complete their post-World Cup downtime.
Benjamin Sesko is sidelined too, still troubled by the shin injury that cut short his previous campaign. The club are not prepared to gamble on their major attacking investment before the competitive season has even begun.
Senne Lammens and Matheus Cunha are also missing. Cunha only returned to training this week after his own World Cup workload with Brazil, but neither absence is cause for alarm. United confirmed both players are recovering from minor, unrelated illnesses and will rejoin the group at next week’s training camp in the Republic of Ireland.
That camp carries its own slice of history: a meeting with old rivals Leeds at Croke Park in Dublin on Wednesday night, a fixture loaded with nostalgia and needle in equal measure.
Fernandes returns, Dalot and Mazraoui travel
For now, attention is on PSG. Carrick has named a 22-man travelling squad, with captain Bruno Fernandes back at the heart of it. The Portuguese playmaker headlines a group that also features Diogo Dalot and Noussair Mazraoui. Of that trio, only Mazraoui starts, a nod to Carrick’s desire to manage minutes with the season creeping closer.
Up front, Bryan Mbeumo keeps his place. He earned it. His two goals in the 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid in Stockholm last weekend underlined his sharpness and gave the manager a reliable focal point in a side still missing several attacking stars.
The romance of Stockholm, though, comes at a cost for some of the youngsters. Fifteen-year-old JJ Gabriel, who captured attention with his senior debut in that game, drops out of the squad, as does fellow debutant Jim Thwaites. The message is clear: this is PSG, and Carrick wants a slightly more seasoned group.
Goalkeeping depth stretched thin
The most fragile area of this United squad is obvious. Between the posts, the options are thin and getting thinner.
Altay Bayindir is not involved after completing a loan move to Celta Vigo on Friday. With Lammens still out and new signing Karl Darlow unavailable as he continues his recovery from minor surgery undergone at Leeds late last season, United’s goalkeeping department has been stripped almost bare.
Radek Vitek’s permanent transfer to Middlesbrough, in a deal worth up to £14million, further underlines the turnover. That leaves 40-year-old Tom Heaton as the starter once again, with Dermot Mee and teenager Fred Heath acting as back-up.
It is a brave configuration for a club of United’s stature, even in pre-season. One injury, one red card, and Carrick would be leaning on raw youth to face elite opposition.
Injury setbacks at the other end
The problems do not stop in goal. In midfield and defence, two significant absentees cast a long shadow over the coming months.
Manuel Ugarte faces a lengthy spell out after undergoing surgery in July on a serious knee injury picked up at the World Cup with Uruguay. His absence removes a powerful, combative presence from the centre of the pitch, the kind of player who can tilt big games by sheer force of will.
At the back, Matthijs de Ligt is still not ready to return from a long-term back issue. Without him, United lose both aerial authority and composure in their defensive line, a concern against opponents of PSG’s calibre.
So Carrick walks into Paris with a squad that is talented but patched together, experienced in places and threadbare in others. The new Belgian midfielder is finally ready. Fernandes is back. Mbeumo is in form. Behind them, a 40-year-old goalkeeper and a clutch of hopeful youngsters wait for their chance.
It is not perfect. It rarely is in pre-season. The real question is whether this uneven, evolving group can offer an early glimpse of the team Carrick wants United to become.
